First published in 1902, this volume contains an extensive, technical scholarly introduction, followed by three Middle-English versions of the Rule of St. Benet along with the Northern Lansdowne Ritual on the reception of novices and the Vespasian Ritual of making a nun. As St Benet is the Medieval English version of St. Benedict, the original version of this text dates back to the 6th century.

Ernst A. Kock

Part 1. Introduction. 1. Early English Versions of the Rule of St. Benet. 2. Two Rituals for the Ordination of Nuns. 3. General Remarks on the Origin and Character of the Texts Here Published. 4. Survey of the Leading Points of the Rule. 5. Description of the MSs. And the Caxton Volume. 6. Manner of Editing. 7. Observations on the Language of the (Northern) Texts. Part 2. Texts. 1. The Northern Prose Version of the Rule of St. Benet. 2. The Northern Metrical Version of the Same. 3. The Caxton Abstract of the Same. 4. The Northern Lansdowne Ritual (the Form, How a Novice Shall be Received). 5. The Vespasian Ritual (the Method of Making a Nun).